Two leading Australian acts confirmed for Rhythm and Alps 2018

Two leading Australian musical acts are the first names to be confirmed for Rhythm and Alps 2018.

The South Island’s biggest New Year’s party has revealed Aussie festival favourites MATT CORBY and THE CAT EMPIRE as the first acts of a stellar line-up for the eighth annual three-day festival.

Indie rock / psychedelic soul singer-songwriter Matt Corby will play mainstage on December 31, along with ska and jazz band The Cat Empire. The Cat Empire’s set will be their first act in New Zealand in four years.

“These artists have a history of sell-out shows in New Zealand,” says Rhythm & Alps festival director Alex Turnbull. “We’re really excited about bringing them down to Wanaka and we know their large NZ fanbase will be stoked, too.”

A further 50 international and national musicians will be performing across R&A’s three iconic stages, with the full line-up announced in August.

“We’re super happy with this year’s line-up. After last year’s huge success and a sell-out show prior to the event we are confident that 2018 will be no different. We’re committed to bringing quality music to the South Island for a world-class summer festival experience,” Turnbull adds.

Earlybird tickets for the December 29-31 event are on sale and are expected to sell out by mid-June.

About Rhythm & AlpsRhythm & Alps is the South Island’s biggest annual New Year’s party and music festival. Up to 10,000 people – including 5,500 campers and 4,500 non-camping ticket holders – are expected to converge in Wanaka’s spectacular Cardrona Valley for the 2018 event. All tickets can be purchased at www.rhythmandalps.co.nz.

About Matt CorbyMatt Corby has grown from one of Australia’s most exciting prospects into one of the nation’s best loved performers. Writing his debut album Telluric was a process of self-discovery as he dug deep to find a sound that would satisfy both his soul and his audience. The critically acclaimed album, now certified gold in Australia, has seen him tour the world playing over 95 shows and selling over 100,000 tickets. Matt and the band have also appeared at Splendour in the Grass, Glastonbury, Lowlands and Sasquatch. Matt now returns to the stage in New Zealand for the first time since his album tour, with his infectious live show and a taste of what’s to come.

About The Cat EmpireFor over a decade, The Cat Empire have been known far and wide as one of the world’s greatest party bands. Their colourful, genre-bending music, shipped across the globe in travellers’ backpacks, seems at home almost anywhere. Difficult to describe and impossible to categorise, The Cat Empire’s reputation is built upon a chaotic and fiercely uplifting live show that saw their most recent album debut Top 20 in 16 countries around the world. With a slew of awards and multiplatinum albums to their name, and well over 1200 shows under their belts, their career has been spectacular. What makes The Cat Empire truly unique though is their prowess behind their instruments; this is a very tight musical outfit of truly gifted musicians. The music they create is uniquely their own, as is their infectious, dance-inducing, cacophonous live show. Full Tour details can be found at www.thecatempire.com.

Written by Celia Crosbie

Celia is an award-winning journalist who has worked for newspapers and radio stations in New Zealand and magazines in the United Kingdom. She has worked in public relations in both NZ and London. Celia also specialises in digital media strategy and website copywriting for SEO.